Exploring CES to Stimulus Mine for Disruptive Ideas
Doug is traveling this week to the Consumer Electronics Show in Las Vegas to stimulus mine for disruptive “idea starters”. What he will not be looking for is WHAT companies are offering. Rather, he will be focused on the WHY & HOW of exhibitor...
True Front End & Back End – Drives Innovation Success
Yesterday I did a webinar for the P&G Alumni Association. It featured three P&G Alumni doing amazing things to help with COVID-19. John Milander - Respirator Invention - Andi Grudgeon - Face Shield Production - and myself for our work with...
2020 VS. 1986
2020 has me thinking on how things have changed in the 34 years since I founded the Eureka! Ranch. In 1986 Consumer Products were the thought leaders of innovation and the focus was on creating line extensions, category segmentations and gurus. In 2020 the...
“911 Emergency” Innovation Speed
Real life event last Thursday. It started with an early morning call with a client in Europe. She had an emergency need for ideas and Market Research Data Today. Completed inventing session with another client at 1:00 pm. During the...
Giving Thanks for tastes & Smells
This morning as I exercised my mind wandered to a dear friend Scott Macaulay - who passed away from cancer way to soon. In his last year of life he spent time really noticing smells, tastes, sights and sounds. I remember him commenting on the aroma and...
A Millenial in Athens Greece Opened my eyes this week
The past few days I’ve had the honor of speaking at the Singularity University event in Greece. Greece’s role in the creation of democracy is well known. It gave power to the people. After one of my talks a young lady came up to me...
nothing beats being on the front lines
Nothing beats - seeing, feeling and experiencing on the front lines. If you are working on an innovation my advice is to make some, sell some and learn a ton! This past Saturday we opened our Brain Brew Distillery at the Eureka! Ranch just outside of...
It’s Important That Everyone Have Something Important to do
“It’s important that everyone have something important to do.” Paul Schurke said this as we embarked on an adventure to recreate Admiral Peary’s Last Dash to the North Pole. As the expedition leader Paul explained that he didn’t want people on the trip...
Growing a Sustainable Culture of Innovation
Imagine a world where across your 10K person organization you had 1K people innovating in their sphere of influence. They were consciously thinking smarter, faster and more innovatively about their daily tasks. Research is finding that if you ignite just 10% of your...
I’m Tired of Practical, Prudent and Puckered
I’m tried of incremental steps. I’m tired of being practical and prudent. I’m tired of self important pucker faces telling me to be reasonable. It’s time to think big again! It’s time to dream great ideas! It’s time to make a...
Doug’s Newest Book
PROACTIVE Problem Solving
Published January 2025 -Stop the Stupid and Build a Smarter, More Productive Organization
The way businesses operate is broken. You see it every day — inefficient systems, endless frustrations, and wasted time. Only 32% of employees feel engaged, while managers spend up to 3.5 hours a day fixing problems caused by flawed work systems. The result is frustration, squandered resources, and missed opportunities.
In PROACTIVE Problem Solving, Doug Hall — visionary & founder of Eureka! Ranch and Brain Brew Distillery — delivers a bold solution to Stop the Stupid and eliminate what’s not working. His proven approach, developed through decades of innovation leadership, empowers organizations to find and fix problems by engaging everyone from the frontline to the c-suite in the problem-solving process.
Grounded in real-world success, this book draws from Doug’s experience leading over 20,000 innovations at Eureka! Ranch and scaling Brain Brew Distillery from a startup to producing over 100,000 cases of bourbon annually.
PROACTIVE Problem Solving dives deep to unearth proven methods for growth and profitability:
- Defining Problems and Solutions: Identify what the problem is, then focus on the “why.” Pinpoint the issues that matter, and build communication skills needed to implement effective solutions.
- Creating Solutions: Understand the three principles that increase problem-solving capabilities: exploring stimulus, leveraging diversity and inclusion, and driving out fear. You’ll learn proven techniques for engaging employees, fostering innovation, and turning teams into problem-solving virtuosos.
- Driving out Risk as You Bring Your Idea to Life: Discover Doug’s reliable system for decreasing risk and increasing success. Transform good ideas into game-changing results.
Whether you’re a manager striving to lead more effectively or an employee wanting to make a greater impact, Proactive Problem Solving delivers actionable insights to revolutionize how work gets done. By implementing these methods, your organization can reduce costly mistakes, enhance employee satisfaction, and drive sustainable growth in today’s competitive business environment.
